Monthly Archives: March 2016

So, I’ve been playing Pokkén Tournament with N. Harmonik over at her place, which you can see here…

…and honest to God, Pokémon have never looked this good EVER in any other game. Maybe Smash Bros, but that’s it. But as I watch not only the Pokémon fighting, but the ones in the backgrounds of the arenas, I can’t help but notice how some have left so many great memories and positive thoughts for me. I think what really hit me was just how many from Pokémon Black and White are among some of my all-time favourites. Mind you, that could be because it had the most new Pokémon of any game since the original Red and Blue versions, since they’d decided to only have brand new ones in the main game. Still, it left me wondering, what would I consider to be some of my favourites from every generation?

So, I decided to make this questionnaire, so that everyone can list their six favourite Pokémon from every generation. I went with six because, that way, people can’t simply choose all the starters or all the members of a single family, and so that they can use their old teams to help decide, since some people, like N. Harmonik, choose to only use Pokémon that debuted within said generations for their teams (with the exception of old ones with new evolutions). Also, I’m listing these by Generation instead of Region because otherwise, most people’s Johto lists would be inhabited by evolutions that didn’t come until Generation IV. Lastly, I’m gonna be excluding Mega Evolutions, since they’d probably take up the majority of spots from lists for Kalos, but I will likely bring them up when talking about individuals from past Generations. With that said, let’s start with the original Generation, and my favourite Pokémon among the original 150.

Yeah, I know, not exactly blowing anyone’s minds that Poliwhirl’s on here. In fact, likely none of these are big surprises, and I probably don’t have to explain a single one. But looking back, I can’t help but think of how these six, in a lot of ways, helped shape how the Pokémon world would grow from then on. Every new entry in the main series would have an Electric-type rodent of some kind, a trio of Starters to choose from that were Grass, Fire, and Water-types, and at least one trio of Legendary Pokémon (with the exception of Generation VI, which seems to reuse Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres). There would also be mass numbers of Water-type Pokémon with varying shapes, sizes, abilities, secondary types, and even branching evolutions through the generations, many of whom took varying cues from Poliwhirl and its family. And…yeah, I’ve lost count of how many times in the history of these games that we’ve seen Snorlax sleeping around and blocking our path. lol My point is, in many ways, these six are the originators of trends we’ve seen in these games for 20 years now, and in many ways are still able to hang with those that have come since, either through new evolutions, Mega Evolutions, attacks, abilities, stat changes, or just their natural badassery. Oh, and don’t think that just because it isn’t on here that I hate or dislike Squirtle and its family. I love it too, but there just wasn’t room on this list. Call it the unofficial #7 here.

Despite the fact that a lot of Pokémon from Johto wouldn’t become truly great until Generation IV, where they got new evolutions, there are still plenty from those games that I have fond memories of. Typhlosion’s pretty easy to justify: Take Charizard, remove its secondary type, and give it a few tricks the former couldn’t do. The result is Typhlosion, and I think it’s a really solid choice from Gold, Silver, and Crystal. Crobat is basically the secret weapon that isn’t quite so secret, as most in the know are well aware of its incredible Speed, but just how many have overlooked it because of how common its initial form, Zubat, is? The answer is A LOT. Umbreon was always one of my favourite Eeveelutions, although it hasn’t aged well, but it’s hard not to put Espeon right up there with it. Heracross is a beast, always has been, always will be. And then there’s Donphan. I loved Donphan before I even knew its name. Just that first appearance in Pokémon The First Movie had me going “What is THAT?! That’s so awesome! It’s like an elephant that turns into a mad wheel or something!” And I don’t think I saw Pikachu’s Summer Vacation when I first I saw the movie, so that was the first time it really hit me that there was gonna be another Pokémon game. I mean, yeah, we had Togepi show up, but I thought that was just gonna be a special event Pokémon like Mew. Speaking of Mew, though, if I remember Generation II for one thing in particular, it would be how this was the point where the previously untouchable Psychic-types were becoming a little more touchable, and they only became more-so as time went on.

Generation III

My Favourites: Sceptile, Blaziken, Swampert, Breloom, Mawile, Lairon

Yeah, surprisingly, not as many big favourites from this Generation as most others. I say ‘surprisingly’, despite this being the Generation that lost a fair share of long-time players, because I actually was not one of those people. I stuck around, and I really liked Generation III. If I can think of one word to best describe it, it’d be, for a lack of a better term, advancement. We had the introduction of Abilities, Pokémon Contests, the Battle Frontier, and a bunch of other stuff. But anyway, the favourites I have from this Generation list still stand out to me. All three starters were pretty solid in their own ways, and I’d like to point out that I liked Swampert and its family before it was cool. Mind you, poor Sceptile was one of the few Pokémon that would be victimized by the physical/special split next Generation, and Blaziken, while cool, started a trend where, for three Generations, we had Fire/Fighting-type starters, and we got sick of it pretty hard. Mawile and Lairon were pretty much immediate favourites from the moment I saw them, just for how cool they looked, but it admittedly took a bit to realize how awesome Breloom was. When I figured it out, though, I felt like smacking myself. Breloom and Blaziken were also the start of what I consider the second Genesis of Fighting-types, though it wouldn’t be complete until what came next…

If Generation III is the start of the major advancement of Pokémon, then Generation IV was when said advancement was perfected. Lots of older Pokémon got brand new and much needed Evolutions. Stuff like the Contests were expanded upon. WiFi was utilized for trading and battling. But to me, the two biggest advancements can be seen in the favourites I chose here. The first is the physical and special split, where instead of being determined by type, whether an attack was physical or special was determined by the move itself and whether there was physical contact with the opponent. This was something that was needed from the START, from the very first games, and we finally had it here. The other major change was that, partially due to the split, and because of a few new attacks and abilities, and new Pokémon like Infernape and Lucario, Fighting-type Pokémon and attacks suddenly became a LOT more usable. In Gen 1, Fighting-types were not all that useful, especially since Psychic-types were so powerful. Generation II introduced Dark and Steel-types, which were weak to Fighting, and Gen 3 brought Pokémon like Blaziken and Breloom to shake up the Fighting-type. This, however, was the major turning point. And I know I’ve told this story before, but one of my favourite Pokémon from all of my playthroughs of the games is a female Lucario I named Tex, after the character from Red vs Blue, because of just how badass she is. Oh yeah, and Roserade is one of my favourite Grass/Poison-types of all time, and I think it’s only topped by Bulbasaur and its family in my eyes. And when you consider how many of those there are, that says a lot.

Again, like I said before, I was surprised to find just how many Pokémon from this Generation have left such great impressions on me. When I see Generation V Pokémon in Pokkén Tournament, I smile. A lot. Hell, the six Pokémon on this list are the members of my original team in Pokémon Black, and I still have plenty of other favourites beyond them, including Braviary, Haxorus, Volcarona, Pansage, and more. And it didn’t really hit me until Team Four Star mentioned it during their Nuzlocke Playthrough of LeafGreen just how ballsy a move Black and White, and Generation V in general, were. Black and White had all brand new Pokémon for the main story, and you couldn’t get anything else until after beating it for the first time. There was no third version, but two direct sequels, the first since Gold, Silver, and Crystal. And the games weren’t made for a brand new system, as you could get them for the Nintendo DS, but did have advantages presented for those that played them on the DSi. But yeah, Samurott is a great mixed attacker, Excadrill is insanely broken as shit, Sawk is a pretty good physical attacker and inheritor to Hitmonlee’s legacy, Cottonee is stupid good despite the fact that Prankster’s less favourable among Trainers nowadays, Emolga is adorable as shit and the first Electric/Flying-type since Zapdos, and Chandelure? Well, Chandelure has the highest Special Attack of all non-Legendary and non-Mega Evolved Fire-type Pokémon, and is a pretty handy Ghost-type, too. Mine had a Nature that was beneficial to Special Attack. Can you see where this is going? So yeah, having it be playable in Pokkén is kind of a treat for me, even if it is bizarre as shit to see in a major fighting game. ^_^

Despite the fact that X & Y feature the least amount of new Pokémon for any new Generation, there’re still plenty of good ones. And, of course, the thing that most people will ultimately remember Generation VI for is Mega Evolution, but like I said, I’m not including Mega Evolutions in this list, so brand new Pokémon for Generation VI only. That said, plenty here that I like a lot. Chespin is just too fucking adorable, not to mention tough enough to beat the Bug-type Gym Leader 2-on-1 with ease. Greninja seems to be a favourite among many, managing to make it as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. Talonflame breaks the tradition of the Pidgeot in that it is the first time we saw the super-common Flying-type evolve into something other than a Normal/Flying-type, and is pretty sweet. Vivillon doesn’t really do much that Butterfree couldn’t, but I like the different designs for it, and it’s still pretty solid despite having a type combination that we’ve seen a lot. Tyrantrum is badass and the first instance of a Fossil Pokémon based on a T-Rex, and I don’t know why it took so long to get it. And Sylveon is, in a lot of ways, outright broken due to the effects Pokémon get for the high levels of Affection that are required to get it, and is a brand new type that massively changes up the competitive battle scene.

So, those are my favourite Pokémon from each Generation. What are yours, though? Feel free to let me know (although you don’t have to go quite as in-depth as I did, lol) in the comments below. Also, lemme know which Pokémon you’d like to see either as DLC for Pokkén Tournament or in a sequel to the game. Ja né!

…SO, today was kinda nuts. Before I go in-depth on all of the big announcements, since I fully expect more news to come out soon enough, let’s instead take a look at some of the art revealed for the new books and a few quick notes I took for the different titles.

80 PAGES FOR $2.99?! That’s some insane dedication to the price drop!

…So wait, several of my favourite Bat Family characters, all part of a team book, and debuting in the same month as my birthday? I feel like this book is especially for me. 😀 Kinda confused by Clayface’s presence, but whatever.

Supergirl going back to a more classic costume makes sense, especially since we have her show going right now. The only thing that’s kinda weird is that we’re keeping the story arc where her father is the new Cyborg Superman. It’s just…odd.

He’s back in blue! THANK GOD! Also, the reaction to the first story arc’s title, “Better Than Batman” got just the exact reaction I was expecting. XD

Greg Rucka is coming back to Wonder Woman. This is going to be INSANE, and I REALLY can’t wait for Wonder Woman Year One, with art by Nicola Scott. Also, thank God, Wonder Woman’s back in gold. I don’t even care that it’s blatantly copied from the movies, it looks good on her. 🙂

Lex Luthor as the new Superman of Metropolis. That’s literally all you need to know to realize that’s gonna end badly. Throw in Doomsday, and I’ll be surprised if there’s anything LEFT of Metropolis by the time we hit Action Comics #1000.

Interested to see where this new story takes Batgirl, but I hope it eventually returns her to Burnside. Would hate to see everything that’s been going on with her dropped so unceremoniously.

So Hal’s going back to the Corps, while Simon Baz and Jessica Cruz are having to take over on Earth. Interesting set up, and REALLY glad to see Cruz graduating to Green Lantern. 🙂

DC has a REALLY warped sense of humour, revealing that the sons of Batman and Superman will be teaming up in the same week that Batman and Superman threw down. lol

Bryan Hitch, Tony Daniel, and Fernando Pasarin have got some BIG shoes to fill with Justice League, but I like the team. Also, it seems details on JLA are being kept a secret for now.

Relax, people. It’s not THAT All-Star Batman. lol Also, I guess now we know what Snyder’s been up to. That said, gotta admit, I’m a little disappointed to see Ivy relegated back to being simply another rogue for Batman after all the work that’s been done with her as her own character.

Y’know, everybody else is talking about how Damian is on the Titans and how Wally West is still black, and all I can think of is “Thank God, Starfire’s on the Titans and NOT the Outlaws”. 😛

A mostly all-new Outlaws team with characters I don’t care much about. So, in other words, Lobdell is being kept away from anything I love. Good to know. ^_^

Whoa, whoa, whoa, lemme see if I understand this correctly: A Titans book where there’s only ONE person in red??? 😛 Also, who is that in green? Can’t be a Lantern, can it?

They really might as well have just said “We’re going with the same team as from the movie”. I mean, honestly, I don’t even really care that they’re cross-promoting, so why not just admit it?

Oh goodie, David Finch is on Batman. -_- Tom King should prove to be a good choice, though, and I’m interested to see where this goes in the aftermath of Superheavy, especially as it pertains to Duke Thomas.

Interesting set-up with Flash having to mentor not one but SEVERAL new speedsters. Also, I don’t care that Wally is still black. I just hope he’s FUN again. That’s all I’ve EVER wanted.

I’ve never been so excited and so confused for a book. So someone is posing as Oracle? Does that mean Oracle is canon again? Also, that’s clearly New 52 Helena as Huntress. So does that mean she really WAS Huntress before having to fake her death?

Anyway, that’s all for now. I’ll go more in depth soon enough, though. Lemme know your own thoughts below, and we’ll see how things pan out from now to May 25th, 2016. Ja né!

I never thought I would like Weavile. In the Pokemon games, you can’t catch Sneasel until you’re at the Elite Four’s friggin doorstep. And its moveset leaves a lot to be desired. (No physical ice moves? But its special attack sucks?)

But then I played Pokken. I chose Weavile as my partner because I tend to go for the speedy types and it looked fun in a gameplay video I saw. I figured I would end up switching out for Charizard or–

Nope. Eff that noise. Weavile is my guy.

So real quick I have a confession to make. I suck at fighting games. I haven’t played one since Soul Caliber II. Which I sucked at. But you know, I’ve been dreaming about a Pokemon battle game since I was a wee eight-year-old. There’s no way I’m…

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, everybody! And in the spirit of green, we got a Poison Ivy comic review, and…well… … … …Pinkie Pie, you wanna field this one?

Thank you. Look, I know I’m gonna get a lot of people angry at me, but overall…I have to say that this comic left me feeling not so great. That’s not to say there aren’t good things still present with this comic, but…well, let’s just get into it. Here are my thoughts on Poison Ivy: Cycle of Life and Death #3. And please keep in mind, these are just MYthoughts, so it could very well be that the problem is simply me, I don’t argue that at all.

So, lemme just start off by saying that I personally find the babies kinda adorable. I know some people disagree, but I think they’re cute. I don’t know why, I just do. I’m kinda worried we’re gonna see them eventually die and/or turn heel, though. It feels like that’d be the most likely scenario in the end, and I’d much rather they not go down that avenue. However, I will say exactly why I feel that to be the most likely ending: Because that would otherwise be a great storyline to do for the long-term and see how it affects and changes Pam, and I’m pretty sure that, as of right now, they have no plans to do stories starring Ivy in the immediate future after the end of this mini-series.

But now we gotta talk about something I know is gonna be a hot button subject: Poison Ivy seduces and kills a man from work that was hitting on her a lot, and then feeds him to her plant monsters. And as soon as I was done reading that scene, I thought to myself “I don’t know that I wanna review this comic, because I’m pretty sure I’m gonna piss somebody off, namely a good percentage of the Poison Ivy League”. And this is a group I’ve been supporting for a long time now, advertised on my blog, spotlighted however I could, and now I’m scared that, once people read this, I may need to kiss my membership goodbye. But…at the same time, this is the life I’ve chosen for myself: Writing, blogging, giving my thoughts. And if I held back on how I really felt, you wouldn’t be able to respect me. So, I have to be honest.

I did NOT like watching Poison Ivy kill that guy. Not just that she killed him, but that she then fed him to her plant monsters. I mean, it was when Ivy fed a guy to a plant that I had to call it quits on the Harley Quinn book, and I can’t say that it’s any better here just because I like one book and its creative team better than the other. I get that she is not a superhero. At times, I wish she was, but she’s not. Regardless, this is supposed to be behaviour she’s beyond. At one point in this comic, she talks about how she’d LIKE to kill two detectives (who were freaking morons, by the way), but that she’s turning over a new leaf (pun likely intended). And then 7 pages later (ads not included, and yes, I counted), she kills this guy. There’s having seasonal affective disorder, and then there’s being just plain psychotic and murderous. And yes, this is now at least two people she’s killed, the dog abuser included. And like I said before, comeuppance is one thing, and both people deserved as much. However, this is murder of two people who, while both were utter assholes and just overall terrible people, and one was technically a criminal as animal abuse is illegal, the other one was just a jerk. Why do I make a point of that specifically? Because I can see her breaking her word and killing if she really and truly felt she HAD to, or if the person was a dangerous criminal and she knows the justice system would screw the pooch on dealing with them, because she’s not a hero. But this, as I said last issue, was unnecessary, and comes off as being done either to hammer in the point that she’s not a superhero, or to come off as some kind of power fantasy for those that wish they could do something about people like this. And keep in mind, I said PEOPLE, not MEN. The fact that they’re men and she’s a woman? Has absolutely nothing to do with this. If either side had their genders reversed, or both, wouldn’t change a damned thing. So if you disagree with my opinions, that’s fine, I fully expect people to. But don’t ANYONEcome at me saying that I don’t like this because of my gender or the genders of the characters involved.

So, does this mean I officially hate this series and am not buying anymore?…No. I thought this one issue was problematic at best, I have concerns for the series overall, but things can still turn around, and I wanna have faith that it will. And frankly, if I abandoned the book at the first sign of trouble, after I and so many others yelled from the rooftops for DC to make this happen, then they’d never give us anything we demand ever again. Plus, I’m interested to see where this goes with the ending, with Catwoman showing up and knowing the two will team up next issue, as well as Darshan finding out about all of this. And hey, I’m still legit curious to know the answer to the mystery and who is responsible for what’s going on. So I’m gonna stick with it. Just letting you know, though, when issue 6 comes out, I WILL be giving my thoughts on the series overall, and if I feel generally negatively about it in the end, I’ll tell you and I’ll say exactly why that is. I just hope for the sake of myself and everyone that wanted this book and all but begged for it that I feel generally positive about the book.

Anyway, those are my thoughts in general. Again, agree, disagree, go ahead. Just remember this, though: I am not someone that went into this book expecting and wanting to hate it. I wanted this as much as anybody, and I remain optimistic about the series for now. Ja né!

Aww, they’re so adorable! ❤ …50 bucks says they turn evil and/or die by the end. lol Here’s the preview for Poison Ivy: Cycle of Life and Death #3.

As the murder investigation at the lab deepens, a new surprise awaits Poison Ivy in the form of the growing hatched sporelings! As these new lifeforms test the limits of their power, will they soon outgrow the need for their creator?

So, I’ve talked about some things I’d like to see from DC Rebirth back before we knew really ANYTHING about it, and I gave general thoughts on the books announced to be part of DC’s new line-up during Rebirth and beyond. Now, it’s time to look at the individual books announced and/or characters involved and talk about what I either expect to see happen as part of this movement to bring back the elements of the books and their characters we and the creators love. Keep in mind, I might’ve discussed some of this already in the aforementioned articles, so I may be repeating a few points. Still, let’s start off with…well, a book I’m a little disappointed to hear something about…And by a little disappointed, I mean my first words upon hearing about it were, and I quote, “SONOFABITCHMOTHERFUCKINGSHITMASSAGINGCOCKGRINDINGMONKEYFACEDCLOWNFART!!!“…I might’ve overreacted slightly. lol

Justice League

Then again, though, when you consider the quality of Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok’s work as of late with Justice League, can you really blame me for that reaction? Well, regardless, with Justice League and Justice League America, what I would recommend doing is having both books be about different groupings of the same team. Like, one book could focus on the original big seven of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and Martian Manhunter (who I am hoping to God is returning to the League now that his book is ending), and the other can focus on some of the newer members, like Shazam, Cyborg, Jessica Cruz, Mister Miracle, and Big Barda. I’ve actually heard for a while now that there might’ve been a planned crossover between Justice League and JLA, but unless they had this planned with whoever was taking over for Johns, I don’t see that happening right away. And frankly, I’m a little sick of books doing crossovers before they hit 12 issues anyway, so holding off on that might be in order.

Batman

Assuming he retains the memory of it from the events of The Darkseid War, something tells me that a future arc of the new Batman title might revolve around him looking for the Joker now that he knows his identity. I just can’t imagine him gaining ahold of that information and not wanting to use it to maybe put an end to the Joker’s threat before anyone else gets hurt. Still, I’m a bit…leery of that idea. See, for me, the Joker works best when you DON’T know all the details of who he really is and what his past was like, and I can’t imagine DC actually going through with that. As Joker himself once put it, “If I’m going to have a past, I prefer it to be multiple choice”. Then again, they’re apparently telling his back-story in the TV show Gotham, which I dislike for various reasons on top of that, so who knows? Like I’ve said before, though, I hope that they decide to make Joker a little more fun in the future. He’s more than capable of being a terrifying villain AND the occasional goofy clown. Other than that, since I don’t see any books involving Robin in the line-up thus far, one has to wonder what’s to become of Damian and the members of We Are Robin, in particular Duke Thomas. Will Damian become Bruce’s full-time partner again in one of the Batman books, or will he step aside and become his own individual while Duke takes his place? Or perhaps Duke will instead take on the identity of Lark, like in one of Bruce’s nightmare scenarios brought on by the Scarecrow’s fear toxin? And what of Jim Gordon? Will he continue to take up the mantle of the All-New Batman? Only time will tell for sure, but we’ll talk more about Batman’s supporting cast and related characters later.

Superman

So, after the newest issue of Action Comics, it looks as though Superman is no longer dying. I could be wrong, but that appears to be the case. He’s also been fully revitalized. So, doesn’t look like the Super League is being built as a possible replacement for the Man of Steel. However, I would be willing to suggest that he’s instead putting it together due to the events where his powers were drained, his identity was leaked, and so on, and that there’d need to be someone who could stand in for him if something like that should ever happen again. Speaking of, though, I’ve got this sneaky suspicion that the public may not remember that Clark Kent and Superman are one in the same post-Rebirth. Why? Well, like I mentioned before, the Spyral satellite has the ability to remove the public’s knowledge of Dick Grayson being Nightwing, which is likely how he’ll return to the role as I’ll get into when I talk about him. If I were one of the heads at DC and decided that Clark’s secret identity being exposed was not a good idea for the long-term, that seems like it’d be a good way out of it. With that said, though, if I may make a request, if that happens and they do that…?

Lois Lane

Keep Lois’ memories of the ordeal intact. This isn’t even me wanting to see Lois and Clark as a couple again (although I do, a LOT), but simply because ever since she found out Clark Kent is Superman, she’s been even more actively involved in stories, for better or worse. Married or unmarried, couple or friends, ultimately, I think history has proven that there are more stories that can be told with her in the know about Clark being Superman than with her being kept out of the loop. But, with that said…yeah, I really do wanna see them together again, especially since the book about the pre-Flashpoint Lois and Clark is ending. In fact, who knows? Maybe they’ll do some kinda merger thing where the Superman and Lois Lane of both worlds blend into one, and both become a balance of their counterparts? Not sure where that leaves little Jonathan, but it could happen. But, for that to happen, obviously, something’s gotta go…

Wonder Woman

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it’s time to call it quits on the Superman and Wonder Woman relationship. Above all else, the reason I’m just plain sick of it is because the two are rarely, if ever, treated like equals when it comes to their relationship. Wonder Woman is pretty much just Superman’s girlfriend in a lot of stories they’re presented in as a couple. Beyond that, my standard requests are as follows: Restore the Amazons to the compassionate protectors of mankind, and for the love of God, pants or no pants, I don’t care anymore, just give us a brighter colour scheme for Diana. In fact, I’d actually be fine with the design Jason Fabok uses for her in Justice League, but with gold instead of silver. Also, I keep hearing that the movie will be rebooting to the old school Etta Candy, and if I can make a suggestion? Do the same in the comics. You don’t necessarily have to undo making her black. Hell, you don’t even need to make her as overweight as the original. Just something similar, and above all else, make Etta the ninja tackling badass sidekick I remember.

Aquaman

…Okay, not really much to say about Aquaman, other than it’s great to see him back to his old look and kicking ass like normal. I will say, though, that the writers really need to make up their minds as to whether he’s gonna be King of Atlantis or not for the foreseeable future, though. No, my biggest concern for the Aquaman books is something…different.

Mera

…OH, GOOD GOD, WHY?! I got into a little bit of a rant about this on Twitter when I saw this, as you can read here. Suffice to say, no. Absolutely not. Whatever the writers of Aquaman are thinking, NO!BADwriters! Don’t make her Aquawoman. You make her Aquawoman, and I will violently murder the first fish I see. Oh, and just saying this? If they DO make Arthur King of Atlantis again, can we PLEASE have these two be officially married again? Or maybe they already have been when I wasn’t looking, I don’t know, but if they aren’t, please don’t listen to Dan, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about when it comes to superheroes being married, especially with these two. It makes no sense for them to not be married when all evidence points to her having served in the capacity of Queen of Atlantis at Arthur’s side at least at one point. Also, I’m sorry, but one of these days, we gotta make Mera an official member of the Justice League. How many times does she have to accompany them and their various divisions into action and show just how easily she stands among them before she’s given a seat?

The Flash

Again, not a lot to say about The Fastest Man Alive, other than that I hope that this whole mess involving him being Central City’s most wanted and being hunted by the Rogues doesn’t last long. I AM interested to see what role he plays with Rebirth, however. As Geoff Johns himself has pointed out, nearly every time there’s been a massive change to the universe, a Flash (usually Barry) was at the center of it. Speaking of, I wonder if we’ll ever get follow-up on exactly why Pandora used Barry to reboot the universe at the end of Flashpoint. The whole thing about Pandora’s Box being the reason seems kinda minor when you consider what that turned out to be. I mean, she really needed to reboot the universe just so we can get a Boom Tube that led to Earth 3? But yeah, once again, my bigger concern is with a certain other Flash…

Wally West

Seriously, I don’t care if he’s black, white, yellow, red, purple, green, or fuchsia, we need the FUN Wally West back. The Wally West who is cracking jokes and being the far more fun-loving Flash. And I don’t care if he’s The Flash, Kid Flash, Impulse, whatever, it’s time to pull the trigger on him suiting up and working with Barry. With that said, a lot of people were against the new costume we saw him in during the whole Future’s End tie-in, but honestly, I thought he looked good. The silver DOES stand out in a very dramatic way and makes him look very distinct from the other Flashes.

Green Lantern

Again, I’d kinda like to see Hal Jordan and John Stewart, and maybe even the other Earth-born Lanterns rotate on the Justice League and JLA. Beyond that, though, I get the feeling that Jessica Cruz will be switching out the Ring of Volthoom from Earth 3 for a Green Lantern Ring. There WAS a silhouette of a female Green Lantern in the image for Rebirth, and Jessica seems like the logical candidate. And frankly, I would just be happy to see her conquer her fear and give Volthoom the boot. Still, kinda hope her Green Lantern costume, if I’m correct, incorporates some elements of her Power Ring costume. Oh, and can we PLEASE have a sense of stability in the Green Lantern Corps for at least a year? I don’t think I even need to point this out, but life has been hell for the Corps as of the past few years. The Guardians finally came out as evil, there’s been a shit-ton of members dying left and right, they got better Guardians who still managed to screw the pooch in the end, and now most of them have been banished to another dimension or some shit. But as for Hal himself…he’s gotta lose the jacket. I’m sorry, but it just doesn’t work for him. To be honest, when he and Parallax had their fight recently, Hal looked more like a villain than Parallax did…y’know, until Parallax pulled the whole fangs thing, which still looks fucking stupid. lol

Martian Manhunter

What in the HELL is going on in J’onn’s comics as of late?!?! No, seriously, someone please explain this shit to me! It turned out he was a bio-engineered weapon the Martians were going to use to take over Earth, and that he was hiding that for years, and that might’ve been why he was kicked outta the League during the gap between the first two story arcs of Justice League, but he doesn’t wanna hurt anyone, but he’s not willing to stop the plan, but then he wants to die, and then he does die, but somehow he’s got different aspects of himself that converge into a new Martian Manhunter, who looks…well, I’m not gonna say BAD. In fact, as far as radical redesigns go, at least this keeps some aspects of the old look intact. But still, he tries at first to lead the martian invasion, but then he decides not to, and now he’s got some kinda giant mech, which is both awesome and stupid, I don’t even know, and oh God, my head… … … …So yeah, please DC, just put him back on the Justice League and scale this nonsense down a bit. I had to check my ear a second ago just to make sure there wasn’t blood seeping from my brain and out there from all that.

Cyborg

Okay, is it just me, or does the storyline of the government being untrusting of Cyborg actually make WAY more sense than when they do the same thing with Superman? Maybe it’s because we’ve seen that Vic’s control CAN be overrode, and thus it’s less about trusting that he’s a good guy, but rather concern that it could happen again, especially when he can be plugged into EVERYTHING. Plus, there’s the whole matter of Victor having cybernetic enhancements to benefit him after he lost most of his body, and yet amputees have to deal with ordinary prosthetic parts that don’t work even a tenth as good. I’m not saying everyone should be decked out with his stuff, and it was established from the beginning that the tech used to make him into Cyborg was experimental and very easily could’ve backfired. And yeah, none of this is actually Victor’s fault, he’s just as much a victim in this as anyone else. Still, I can at least understand the conflict here WAY more, and if they wanna continue with that arc post-Rebirth, I wouldn’t mind. However, I WOULD suggest maybe adding more to his rogues gallery. We need his version of the Joker or Lex Luthor, someone who is his opposite in nearly every way, but can challenge him on an equal footing despite his natural advantages.

Shazam

If I haven’t made it abundantly clear by now, allow me to do so: I HATE THIS VERSION OF CAPTAIN MARVEL! And a big part of why I hate him all revolves around the mass changes to Billy Batson. He was supposed to be a sweet, innocent, giving, and (for the most part) selfless individual. It was why he was chosen to gain the powers of Shazam. But when we meet him in THIS universe, he’s a little punk shithead who cons people and is mean to his adoptive family for no reason other than he wants to be! And even after all that, when he finally becomes Shazam and learns more about being a hero, he STILL acts like a little twerp who swears a lot to sound adult and cool, which is at its most jarring when he’s transformed into Shazam, has the wisdom of Solomon, and therefore should know better! But then, I KNOW why they made those changes. It’s the exact same reason they made so many changes to Superman: It was to make him SO much more identifiable and realistic. But, just like with Superman, it was done in a manner so poorly that he no longer resembles the hero he once was in any way. Hell, he doesn’t even have the same NAME! Seriously, DC, if you are serious about this, look back at what made the old Captain Marvel a beloved character and try reintroducing those elements.

Anyway, that’s all when it comes to the Justice League. Check back in next time when I look at the Bat Family and what I hope and/or expect to see become of Nightwing, Batgirl, and the returning Birds of Prey. Ja né!

Well, since I’m gonna be switching over to the trades, and I won’t be buying the Spider-Women crossover, I guess this will be the last issue of Spider-Gwen I personally buy in a while. It’s been one hell of a ride, though, so let’s close this out in a badass way: Spider-Gwen and Captain America vs the Green Goblin! Here’s the preview for Radioactive Spider-Gwen #6!

THE FIRST ARC OF RADIOACTIVE SPIDER-GWEN REACHES ITS CONCLUSION!

CAPTAIN AMERICA JOINS FORCES WITH SPIDER-GWEN AGAIN TO TAKE DOWN THE GREEN GOBLIN!